MEET OUR BOARD

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Linda was born and raised in McGillivray Township as the eldest of 9 children and attended NMDHS in Parkhill. She has been blessed with two sons, their spouses and 5 grandchildren. She resides on a farm outside of Dashwood with her life partner Bob Hoffman. Linda's career spanned 38 years with BMO, Commercial Banking, both locally and in London. While in Fernie B.C. for 3 months in 2014, she started following a painting show
on PBS and decided to try painting with acrylics. Following a road trip to Calgary for supplies, painting became a creative outlet for her in addition to crafting and gardening. She is honoured to have been asked to sit on the Board of the new South Huron Arts Centre. 

Scott lives just outside of Exeter with his wife Melissa Prout and their three young children. He is passionate about community development and helping individuals and organizations achieve their full potential. Coming from a family of talented artists, musicians, and professional performers, how unfortunate it was to discover that Scott has no artistic abilities at all. He leans on his experience and training in business administration to find other ways that add value to the South Huron Arts Centre. 

Leigh-Anne has always had a passion for being creative. She, therefore, is thrilled to be part of the South Huron Arts Centre. She started her career in Travel and Tourism and retired after 34 years. In her spare time, she enjoys taking on new creative projects whether engaging in paint, textile, wood, mortar, and refinishing furniture. Loving the idea of bringing all her creative skills together, she completed her interior design certificate and enjoys helping others renew joy in their living space. She recently found the art of pottery and has loved exploring her creative side with a new medium. Leigh-Anne currently resides in Grand Bend with her husband Jim and has 2 children who live with their partners in Grand Valley and Peterborough. Leigh-Anne looks forward to working with the South Huron Arts Centre team to grow this amazing community organization.   

Angela's roots in Exeter run deep, having been born, raised, and married here. She loves spending time with her family; she and her husband Wayne have a daughter in her last year of university. They have been in business together as owners of Wayne's DriDek & Roofing for the past 13 years. Angela also loves the opportunity to interact with the public through her job at The Jewellery Box in Exeter. She has a level 2 Reiki certification and is working towards level 3. She enjoys art in many forms, especially finding natural beauty outdoors through cloud watching, sunrises and sunsets. In her free time, Ang has an addiction to doodling; this simple, carefree, no-rules art is relaxing and a creative way to calm a busy mind after a long day. In joining the South Huron Arts Center Board, she hopes to expand her interest in different kinds of art and encourage others to open up and explore new and different ways to use art in their daily lives. Angela is very thankful to have a small part in something so wonderful in the community she grew up in. 

Rick and Jane wandered from Windsor to Toronto and then to London, where their children began showing up. Following a stint in Southampton, they lugged Eric, Tim and Beth to Exeter. While Rick and Jane have hung around for over thirty years, the kids escaped. The boys live in Lucan and Beth is in London. They now have wonderful spouses and the world’s top seven grandkids, according to the latest ranking. Since retiring, Rick has found a strong following for his mystery novels featuring Grand Bend Private Investigator, Jack Beer. Book seven, One Last Fix will be self-published in the spring of ’23. 

You can visit Rick or download free copies of his award-winning short stories, at www.rickhundey.ca. Or say hello to him at rickhundeymysteries@gmail.com.  You could try his cell phone if he owned one.. 

Deb has been passionate about the arts, since playing the donkey in the Christmas play in Grade 1. She studied ballet, tap and jazz from the time she was 4, earning her Gold Medal in Ballet from the University of Western Ontario when she was 18, and performing with a professional jazz dance company for three years while attending University. Deb performed in plays throughout high school and university and now enjoys directing and choreographing the annual South Huron Community Theatre shows. Deb was an elementary and secondary school teacher, secondary school Principal, administrator of Virtual High School (Ontario), National Consultant for Pearson Education, and Director of Curriculum for TVO, among other roles. Deb especially enjoys her weekly playdates with her two youngest grandboys.

 Daniel is an Engineer by trade but in his free time is eager to share his passion for the arts. Throughout university he led and performed in a variety of a cappella groups at UW and McMaster, and competed in the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella (ICCA), various Gilbert and Sullivan and other music theater productions and the University Chamber Choirs. He continues to perform chamber music with the Juno-nominated Da Capo Chamber Choir in Kitchener-Waterloo. He strongly supports local and grassroots arts initiatives for live music, community theatre and believes in creating opportunities where artists can be compensated for their work and talents. In addition to the SHAC Board, Daniel sits on the executive for the Cultural Collective of South Huron. 

Art has been an important part of Ruth Anne Merner’s life for as long as she can remember. Art makes her happy so she feels very lucky to have had a career making art and sharing the excitement of creativity with people of all ages for many years in both this community and for 32 years in the Thames Valley District School Board-where the art departments at Wheable S.S., Banting S.S., and Montcalm S.S. were Ruth Anne’s second homes. As a lifelong resident of South Huron, she has found it so rewarding to work with countless area volunteers on successful community projects such as Empty Bowls, Empty Spoons, The Great Poppy Installation in Goderich and the Bright and Beautiful event in support of Jessica’s House. There is great joy in helping people discover and use their own creativity and at the same time support important local causes. As an original member of ArtAroundTown for about 12 years Ruth Anne has helped to promote the arts in South Huron and to participate in arranging many classes in a wide variety of the visual arts for all ages. Her personal artwork focuses on clay and glass. Ruth Anne is thrilled to be a part of the team initiating this new Art Centre which will be such an asset to our community.